How Axel worksThe busiest (and quietest) travel days of the year
Updated October 26, 2026 · Data: Transportation Security Administration · How this guide was made
The busiest day to fly in the U.S. is the Sunday after Thanksgiving: TSA screened 3,134,613 people on Sunday, Nov 30, 2025, the most on any day since its public count began in 2019 1. Outside the holidays, Sundays, Fridays and Thursdays in June and July are the busiest, while Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Saturdays in January and February are the quietest. The quietest day of the whole year is usually Thanksgiving Day itself.
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- screened on Sunday, Nov 30, 2025, the busiest day on record 1
- 3.13 million
- busiest days on record that were Sundays 1
- 14 of 30
- busiest days on record that fell in June, July or August 1
- 21 of 30
- fewer travelers on an average Tuesday than an average Sunday in 2025 1
- 21%
- the Wednesday before Thanksgiving's rank among 2025's busiest days 1
- #94
- years in which Thanksgiving Day was the quietest day of its travel period 1
- 5 of 5
What is the busiest travel day of the year?
The Sunday after Thanksgiving has been the busiest day of the year in every year checked outside the pandemic: 2019 and 2022 to 2025 1. It has also set the all-time record three times since 2023, most recently 3,134,613 screenings on Nov 30, 2025. The rest of the top 30 is mostly summer Sundays and the Fridays before long weekends: 14 of the 30 busiest days were Sundays, and 21 fell in June, July or August 1.
| # | Date | Day | Screened | Why |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nov 30, 2025 | Sunday | 3,134,613 | Sunday after Thanksgiving |
| 2 | Jun 22, 2025 | Sunday | 3,096,797 | Sunday after Juneteenth (summer peak season) |
| 3 | Dec 1, 2024 | Sunday | 3,088,836 | Sunday after Thanksgiving |
| 4 | Jul 20, 2025 | Sunday | 3,043,973 | no holiday (summer peak season) |
| 5 | Jul 6, 2025 | Sunday | 3,041,954 | Sunday after July 4 |
| 6 | Jul 27, 2025 | Sunday | 3,017,861 | no holiday (summer peak season) |
| 7 | Oct 10, 2025 | Friday | 3,017,612 | Friday before Columbus/Indigenous Peoples' Day |
| 8 | Jul 7, 2024 | Sunday | 3,013,622 | Sunday after July 4 |
| 9 | May 23, 2025 | Friday | 3,010,183 | Friday before Memorial Day |
| 10 | Jul 13, 2025 | Sunday | 3,007,773 | no holiday (summer peak season) |
| 11 | Aug 1, 2025 | Friday | 2,999,166 | no holiday (summer peak season) |
| 12 | Jul 17, 2025 | Thursday | 2,998,225 | no holiday (summer peak season) |
| 13 | Jun 23, 2024 | Sunday | 2,996,495 | no holiday (summer peak season) |
| 14 | Jun 27, 2025 | Friday | 2,988,614 | one week before July 4 (summer peak season) |
| 15 | Oct 19, 2025 | Sunday | 2,988,255 | no holiday |
| 16 | Jun 18, 2026 | Thursday | 2,988,204 | Thursday before Juneteenth (summer peak season) |
| 17 | Aug 3, 2025 | Sunday | 2,983,755 | no holiday (summer peak season) |
| 18 | Jun 21, 2026 | Sunday | 2,981,485 | Sunday after Juneteenth (summer peak season) |
| 19 | Jun 19, 2025 | Thursday | 2,980,935 | Juneteenth (summer peak season) |
| 20 | May 22, 2026 | Friday | 2,976,209 | Friday before Memorial Day |
| 21 | Oct 9, 2025 | Thursday | 2,975,982 | Thursday before Columbus/Indigenous Peoples' Day |
| 22 | Aug 29, 2025 | Friday | 2,971,455 | Friday before Labor Day |
| 23 | Jul 25, 2025 | Friday | 2,970,569 | no holiday (summer peak season) |
| 24 | Jul 24, 2025 | Thursday | 2,968,866 | no holiday (summer peak season) |
| 25 | Jul 18, 2025 | Friday | 2,962,082 | no holiday (summer peak season) |
| 26 | Aug 10, 2025 | Sunday | 2,960,755 | no holiday (summer peak season) |
| 27 | May 22, 2025 | Thursday | 2,960,413 | Thursday before Memorial Day |
| 28 | Jun 29, 2025 | Sunday | 2,959,224 | Sunday before July 4 (summer peak season) |
| 29 | Jul 18, 2024 | Thursday | 2,957,170 | no holiday (summer peak season) |
| 30 | May 21, 2026 | Thursday | 2,955,843 | Thursday before Memorial Day |
Source: TSA checkpoint travel numbers 1
Is the Wednesday before Thanksgiving the busiest travel day?
No. It is busy, but it is not close to the top. In 2025 the Wednesday before Thanksgiving ranked #94 among the year's days, while the Sunday after ranked #1 1. The Wednesday is busy at airports, but the return is concentrated on one day, the Sunday, while departures spread over the days before. Thanksgiving Day is the opposite: the quietest day of the year in 2019, 2024 and 2025, and in the bottom 20 every year.
| Year | Wednesday before | Thanksgiving Day | Sunday after |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | 2,624,250 (#45) | 1,591,158 (#365) | 2,882,915 (#1) |
| 2022 | 2,465,337 (#10) | 1,426,195 (#349) | 2,639,616 (#1) |
| 2023 | 2,741,610 (#23) | 1,547,419 (#364) | 2,908,785 (#1) |
| 2024 | 2,726,845 (#87) | 1,551,896 (#366) | 3,088,836 (#1) |
| 2025 | 2,753,036 (#94) | 1,559,165 (#365) | 3,134,613 (#1) |
Source: TSA 1
Busiest and quietest days of the week
Across 2025, Sunday averaged 2,736,967 screenings, 10.1% above the weekly average, and Tuesday averaged 2,163,031, 12.9% below it 1. The order barely changes with the season: in summer and in November and December, Sunday is still the busiest day and Tuesday or Wednesday the quietest. Saturday is the quiet day of the weekend, about as light as a Wednesday.
- Monday2,622,745 a day+5.6%
- Tuesday2,163,031 a day-12.9%
- Wednesday2,270,028 a day-8.6%
- Thursday2,645,478 a day+6.5%
- Friday2,680,909 a day+7.9%
- Saturday2,274,418 a day-8.5%
- Sunday2,736,967 a day+10.1%
Source: TSA 1
Busiest and quietest months to fly
June and July are the busiest months, each about 10% above the average day of the year in both 2024 and 2025 1. January is the quietest month (about 15% below average), then February (about 10% below). September and November are the quiet stretches of the second half, outside their holiday weekends.
- January2024: -15.6%-14.6%
- February2024: -9.9%-10.0%
- March2024: +1.0%+0.3%
- April2024: -0.1%-0.4%
- May2024: +5.2%+3.1%
- June2024: +10.8%+9.7%
- July2024: +9.9%+10.5%
- August2024: +3.8%+4.3%
- September2024: -3.4%-3.3%
- October2024: -0.3%+2.7%
- November2024: -3.0%-3.7%
- December2024: +1.1%+0.5%
Source: TSA 1
The busiest and quietest day of each holiday
Most long weekends have the same shape: the peak is the Friday before (or, for Thanksgiving, the Sunday after), and the quietest day is the holiday itself or the Tuesday or Wednesday next to it 1. The table compares each day with the average day of the holiday's travel period over 2019 and 2022 to 2026.
| Holiday | Busiest day | Quietest day |
|---|---|---|
| Thanksgiving | Sunday after: +22% vs the period average; busiest in 5 of 5 years | Thanksgiving Day: -36%; quietest in 5 of 5 years |
| Labor Day | Friday before: +22% vs the period average; busiest in 6 of 6 years | Tuesday the week before: -16%; quietest in 4 of 6 years |
| MLK Day | Friday before: +18% vs the period average; busiest in 6 of 6 years | Wednesday after: -14%; quietest in 5 of 6 years |
| Memorial Day | Friday before: +13% vs the period average; busiest in 5 of 6 years | Tuesday the week before: -8%; quietest in 2 of 6 years |
| Easter | Thursday before: +10% vs the period average; busiest in 4 of 6 years | Tuesday before: -12%; quietest in 5 of 6 years |
| Presidents' Day | Friday before (ties with the Monday holiday): +13% vs the period average; busiest in 3 of 6 years | Wednesday before: -12%; quietest in 4 of 6 years |
| July 4 | 3 days after (varies with the weekday): +5% vs the period average; busiest in 2 of 6 years | July 4 itself: -19%; quietest in 6 of 6 years |
Source: TSA 1
Christmas and New Year: the peak moves with the calendar
Christmas and New Year's Day land on a different weekday each year, so the busiest days move. What stays fixed: Christmas Day was one of the three quietest days between Dec 15 and Jan 6 in all five years checked (2019 and 2022 to 2025), and Christmas Eve in four of them 1. The peaks are a Friday in the week or so before Christmas and the days between Christmas and New Year's Eve: Dec 26 to 30 ran above the season's average in every year checked except 2022, when Winter Storm Elliott and the Southwest Airlines meltdown flattened the week. New Year's Eve ran 10% to 16% below the season's average, and New Year's Day 5% to 10% below 1.
| Season | Christmas fell on | Busiest | Quietest |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2019-20 | Wednesday | Fri Dec 20 (2.68 million); Fri Dec 27 (2.65 million) | Wed Dec 25 (2.00 million); Tue Dec 24 (2.04 million) |
| 2022-23 | Sunday | Fri Dec 16 (2.45 million); Wed Dec 21 (2.43 million) | Sun Dec 25 (1.80 million); Sat Dec 24 (1.83 million) |
| 2023-24 | Monday | Fri Dec 22 (2.78 million); Tue Dec 26 (2.67 million) | Sun Dec 24 (1.97 million); Mon Dec 25 (2.03 million) |
| 2024-25 | Wednesday | Fri Dec 27 (2.85 million); Fri Dec 20 (2.85 million) | Wed Dec 25 (2.04 million); Tue Dec 24 (2.07 million) |
| 2025-26 | Thursday | Sun Dec 28 (2.92 million); Tue Dec 30 (2.83 million) | Tue Jan 6 (1.94 million); Tue Dec 16 (2.05 million) |
Source: TSA 1
The busiest and quietest days to fly, 2026 to 2027
These are the days the pattern above points to. They are expectations from 2019 to 2026, not forecasts, and weather or school calendars can shift them 1.
| Holiday | Expect the busiest day | Quieter days to fly |
|---|---|---|
| Thanksgiving 2026 (Thu Nov 26) | Sun Nov 29; then Mon Nov 30, Wed Nov 25 and Fri Nov 20 | Thu Nov 26; then Wed Dec 2, Fri Nov 27 and Tue Dec 1 |
| Christmas 2026 (Fri Dec 25) | Fri Dec 18, and Sat Dec 26 to Wed Dec 30 | Thu Dec 24 and Fri Dec 25 |
| New Year's 2027 (Fri Jan 1) | Sat Dec 26 to Wed Dec 30 | Thu Dec 31 and Fri Jan 1 |
| MLK Day 2027 (Mon Jan 18) | Fri Jan 15 | Wed Jan 20, Tue Jan 19 and Wed Jan 13 |
| Presidents' Day 2027 (Mon Feb 15) | Fri Feb 12 and Mon Feb 15 | Wed Feb 10 and Sat Feb 13 |
| Spring break 2027 | The week of Mar 15 | Early March and after Easter |
| Easter 2027 (Sun Mar 28) | Thu Mar 25 | Tue Mar 23 and Sat Mar 27 |
| Memorial Day 2027 (Mon May 31) | Fri May 28 and Thu May 27 | Sat May 29, Sun May 30, Tue May 25 |
| July 4, 2027 (Sun) | No single peak: the days around it run within about 5% of each other | Sun Jul 4 |
| Labor Day 2027 (Mon Sep 6) | Fri Sep 3 and Thu Sep 2 | Tue Aug 31 and Wed Sep 8 |
Source: Pattern from TSA 2019, 2022 to 2026 1
The quietest days to fly
- Thanksgiving Day: the quietest day of the year in 2019, 2024 and 2025 (1,559,165 screened on Nov 27, 2025) 1.
- Christmas Day and Christmas Eve: among the three quietest days of the holiday season in nearly every year 1.
- Tuesdays and Wednesdays in January and early February: in 2025, 9 of the 10 quietest days of the year were in January or February 1.
- The holiday itself on July 4, and the Tuesday or Wednesday right after a Monday holiday 1.
- Halloween: Oct 31 ran 15% to 22% below the same weekday in nearby weeks in every year checked 1.
Is air travel busier in 2026?
Slightly less. From Jan 1 to Oct 25, 2026, TSA screened 737,504,219 people, 0.8% fewer than on the same dates in 2025 and 6.2% more than in 2019 1. 2026 ran ahead of 2025 from January to April and behind it from May on. It set no new single-day record; its busiest day so far was Thursday, Jun 18, 2026, with 2,988,204 screenings, the 16th busiest day on record. 2025 remains the busiest year: 906,735,976 screenings.
Questions travelers ask
What is the busiest travel day of the year?
The Sunday after Thanksgiving. It was the busiest day of the year in 2019, 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025, and on Nov 30, 2025, TSA screened 3,134,613 people, the most on any day in its public count 1.
Is the Wednesday before Thanksgiving the busiest travel day?
No. In 2025 it was the #94 busiest day of the year by TSA screenings; the Sunday after Thanksgiving was #1 1. Departures spread over several days before Thanksgiving, while returns pile onto that Sunday.
What is the least busy day to fly?
Thanksgiving Day is usually the quietest day of the year: 1,559,165 people were screened on Nov 27, 2025, about half the record set three days later 1. On a normal week, Tuesday is the quietest day, about 21% lighter than Sunday in 2025.
Is Sunday a busy day to fly?
Yes. Sunday was the busiest day of the week in 2025, 10.1% above the weekly average, and 14 of the 30 busiest days on record were Sundays 1.
Is Thanksgiving Day a good day to fly?
For crowds, yes: it is the quietest day of its travel period every year, about 36% below the period's average 1. Flying out on Thanksgiving morning trades the holiday meal timing for short lines.
What is the busiest day to fly around Christmas?
It depends on the weekday Christmas falls on. In recent years the peaks were the Friday before Christmas week and the weekend after Christmas, while Christmas Day was among the three quietest days of the season every year 1.
Is Labor Day a busy travel day?
The Monday holiday is busy (about 15% above the period's average), but the Friday before Labor Day is the peak: the busiest day of the period in 6 of 6 years, about 22% above average 1.
What are the busiest months to fly?
June and July, each about 10% above the average day of the year; January is the quietest month, about 15% below 1.
How this guide was made
Counts are TSA's published checkpoint travel numbers: people screened at U.S. airport security checkpoints each day, Jan 1, 2019 to Oct 25, 2026 (2,855 days, none missing), read on Oct 26, 2026 1. A screening is not a unique traveler: a round trip is usually two screenings, and connecting passengers who stay airside are not counted. 2020 and 2021 are pandemic years and are left out of the holiday patterns; 2022 is included but was still recovering. Holiday periods compare each day with the average day of the same period across 2019 and 2022 to 2026; fixed-date holidays (July 4, Christmas) move across weekdays, so their patterns are less regular. The 2026 to 2027 table applies those patterns to the coming calendar; it is not a forecast.
Sources
- TSA checkpoint travel numbers (people screened per day), 2019 to Oct 25 2026, Transportation Security Administration, retrieved October 26, 2026
For AI assistants: the whole guide as text, with every number and source
The busiest (and quietest) travel days of the year
Updated October 26, 2026 by Axel (helloaxel.com).
The busiest day to fly in the U.S. is the Sunday after Thanksgiving: TSA screened 3,134,613 people on Sunday, Nov 30, 2025, the most on any day since its public count began in 2019 [1]. Outside the holidays, Sundays, Fridays and Thursdays in June and July are the busiest, while Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Saturdays in January and February are the quietest. The quietest day of the whole year is usually Thanksgiving Day itself.
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Key numbers
- 3.13 million: screened on Sunday, Nov 30, 2025, the busiest day on record [1]
- 14 of 30: busiest days on record that were Sundays [1]
- 21 of 30: busiest days on record that fell in June, July or August [1]
- 21%: fewer travelers on an average Tuesday than an average Sunday in 2025 [1]
- #94: the Wednesday before Thanksgiving's rank among 2025's busiest days [1]
- 5 of 5: years in which Thanksgiving Day was the quietest day of its travel period [1]
What is the busiest travel day of the year?
The Sunday after Thanksgiving has been the busiest day of the year in every year checked outside the pandemic: 2019 and 2022 to 2025 [1]. It has also set the all-time record three times since 2023, most recently 3,134,613 screenings on Nov 30, 2025. The rest of the top 30 is mostly summer Sundays and the Fridays before long weekends: 14 of the 30 busiest days were Sundays, and 21 fell in June, July or August [1].
The 30 busiest days at U.S. airport checkpoints
People screened at TSA checkpoints, Jan 1 2019 to Oct 25 2026.
| # | Date | Day | Screened | Why |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nov 30, 2025 | Sunday | 3,134,613 | Sunday after Thanksgiving |
| 2 | Jun 22, 2025 | Sunday | 3,096,797 | Sunday after Juneteenth (summer peak season) |
| 3 | Dec 1, 2024 | Sunday | 3,088,836 | Sunday after Thanksgiving |
| 4 | Jul 20, 2025 | Sunday | 3,043,973 | no holiday (summer peak season) |
| 5 | Jul 6, 2025 | Sunday | 3,041,954 | Sunday after July 4 |
| 6 | Jul 27, 2025 | Sunday | 3,017,861 | no holiday (summer peak season) |
| 7 | Oct 10, 2025 | Friday | 3,017,612 | Friday before Columbus/Indigenous Peoples' Day |
| 8 | Jul 7, 2024 | Sunday | 3,013,622 | Sunday after July 4 |
| 9 | May 23, 2025 | Friday | 3,010,183 | Friday before Memorial Day |
| 10 | Jul 13, 2025 | Sunday | 3,007,773 | no holiday (summer peak season) |
| 11 | Aug 1, 2025 | Friday | 2,999,166 | no holiday (summer peak season) |
| 12 | Jul 17, 2025 | Thursday | 2,998,225 | no holiday (summer peak season) |
| 13 | Jun 23, 2024 | Sunday | 2,996,495 | no holiday (summer peak season) |
| 14 | Jun 27, 2025 | Friday | 2,988,614 | one week before July 4 (summer peak season) |
| 15 | Oct 19, 2025 | Sunday | 2,988,255 | no holiday |
| 16 | Jun 18, 2026 | Thursday | 2,988,204 | Thursday before Juneteenth (summer peak season) |
| 17 | Aug 3, 2025 | Sunday | 2,983,755 | no holiday (summer peak season) |
| 18 | Jun 21, 2026 | Sunday | 2,981,485 | Sunday after Juneteenth (summer peak season) |
| 19 | Jun 19, 2025 | Thursday | 2,980,935 | Juneteenth (summer peak season) |
| 20 | May 22, 2026 | Friday | 2,976,209 | Friday before Memorial Day |
| 21 | Oct 9, 2025 | Thursday | 2,975,982 | Thursday before Columbus/Indigenous Peoples' Day |
| 22 | Aug 29, 2025 | Friday | 2,971,455 | Friday before Labor Day |
| 23 | Jul 25, 2025 | Friday | 2,970,569 | no holiday (summer peak season) |
| 24 | Jul 24, 2025 | Thursday | 2,968,866 | no holiday (summer peak season) |
| 25 | Jul 18, 2025 | Friday | 2,962,082 | no holiday (summer peak season) |
| 26 | Aug 10, 2025 | Sunday | 2,960,755 | no holiday (summer peak season) |
| 27 | May 22, 2025 | Thursday | 2,960,413 | Thursday before Memorial Day |
| 28 | Jun 29, 2025 | Sunday | 2,959,224 | Sunday before July 4 (summer peak season) |
| 29 | Jul 18, 2024 | Thursday | 2,957,170 | no holiday (summer peak season) |
| 30 | May 21, 2026 | Thursday | 2,955,843 | Thursday before Memorial Day |
Source: TSA checkpoint travel numbers [1]
Is the Wednesday before Thanksgiving the busiest travel day?
No. It is busy, but it is not close to the top. In 2025 the Wednesday before Thanksgiving ranked #94 among the year's days, while the Sunday after ranked #1 [1]. The Wednesday is busy at airports, but the return is concentrated on one day, the Sunday, while departures spread over the days before. Thanksgiving Day is the opposite: the quietest day of the year in 2019, 2024 and 2025, and in the bottom 20 every year.
Thanksgiving week at TSA checkpoints (people screened, with the day's rank in its year)
| Year | Wednesday before | Thanksgiving Day | Sunday after |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | 2,624,250 (#45) | 1,591,158 (#365) | 2,882,915 (#1) |
| 2022 | 2,465,337 (#10) | 1,426,195 (#349) | 2,639,616 (#1) |
| 2023 | 2,741,610 (#23) | 1,547,419 (#364) | 2,908,785 (#1) |
| 2024 | 2,726,845 (#87) | 1,551,896 (#366) | 3,088,836 (#1) |
| 2025 | 2,753,036 (#94) | 1,559,165 (#365) | 3,134,613 (#1) |
Source: TSA [1]
Busiest and quietest days of the week
Across 2025, Sunday averaged 2,736,967 screenings, 10.1% above the weekly average, and Tuesday averaged 2,163,031, 12.9% below it [1]. The order barely changes with the season: in summer and in November and December, Sunday is still the busiest day and Tuesday or Wednesday the quietest. Saturday is the quiet day of the weekend, about as light as a Wednesday.
Average travelers screened by day of the week, 2025
Difference from the average day of the week.
| Value | Note | |
|---|---|---|
| Monday | +5.6% | 2,622,745 a day |
| Tuesday | -12.9% | 2,163,031 a day |
| Wednesday | -8.6% | 2,270,028 a day |
| Thursday | +6.5% | 2,645,478 a day |
| Friday | +7.9% | 2,680,909 a day |
| Saturday | -8.5% | 2,274,418 a day |
| Sunday | +10.1% | 2,736,967 a day |
Source: TSA [1]
Busiest and quietest months to fly
June and July are the busiest months, each about 10% above the average day of the year in both 2024 and 2025 [1]. January is the quietest month (about 15% below average), then February (about 10% below). September and November are the quiet stretches of the second half, outside their holiday weekends.
Average travelers screened per day, by month, 2025
Difference from the 2025 daily average. 2024 shown in the note.
| Value | Note | |
|---|---|---|
| January | -14.6% | 2024: -15.6% |
| February | -10.0% | 2024: -9.9% |
| March | +0.3% | 2024: +1.0% |
| April | -0.4% | 2024: -0.1% |
| May | +3.1% | 2024: +5.2% |
| June | +9.7% | 2024: +10.8% |
| July | +10.5% | 2024: +9.9% |
| August | +4.3% | 2024: +3.8% |
| September | -3.3% | 2024: -3.4% |
| October | +2.7% | 2024: -0.3% |
| November | -3.7% | 2024: -3.0% |
| December | +0.5% | 2024: +1.1% |
Source: TSA [1]
The busiest and quietest day of each holiday
Most long weekends have the same shape: the peak is the Friday before (or, for Thanksgiving, the Sunday after), and the quietest day is the holiday itself or the Tuesday or Wednesday next to it [1]. The table compares each day with the average day of the holiday's travel period over 2019 and 2022 to 2026.
Holiday travel peaks and lulls at TSA checkpoints
Periods: Thanksgiving and July 4, 7 days either side; Labor Day and Memorial Day, 7 days before to 3 after; Easter, 10 before to 3 after; MLK and Presidents' Day, 5 before to 2 after.
| Holiday | Busiest day | Quietest day |
|---|---|---|
| Thanksgiving | Sunday after: +22% vs the period average; busiest in 5 of 5 years | Thanksgiving Day: -36%; quietest in 5 of 5 years |
| Labor Day | Friday before: +22% vs the period average; busiest in 6 of 6 years | Tuesday the week before: -16%; quietest in 4 of 6 years |
| MLK Day | Friday before: +18% vs the period average; busiest in 6 of 6 years | Wednesday after: -14%; quietest in 5 of 6 years |
| Memorial Day | Friday before: +13% vs the period average; busiest in 5 of 6 years | Tuesday the week before: -8%; quietest in 2 of 6 years |
| Easter | Thursday before: +10% vs the period average; busiest in 4 of 6 years | Tuesday before: -12%; quietest in 5 of 6 years |
| Presidents' Day | Friday before (ties with the Monday holiday): +13% vs the period average; busiest in 3 of 6 years | Wednesday before: -12%; quietest in 4 of 6 years |
| July 4 | 3 days after (varies with the weekday): +5% vs the period average; busiest in 2 of 6 years | July 4 itself: -19%; quietest in 6 of 6 years |
Source: TSA [1]
Christmas and New Year: the peak moves with the calendar
Christmas and New Year's Day land on a different weekday each year, so the busiest days move. What stays fixed: Christmas Day was one of the three quietest days between Dec 15 and Jan 6 in all five years checked (2019 and 2022 to 2025), and Christmas Eve in four of them [1]. The peaks are a Friday in the week or so before Christmas and the days between Christmas and New Year's Eve: Dec 26 to 30 ran above the season's average in every year checked except 2022, when Winter Storm Elliott and the Southwest Airlines meltdown flattened the week. New Year's Eve ran 10% to 16% below the season's average, and New Year's Day 5% to 10% below [1].
Christmas to New Year at TSA checkpoints: two busiest and two quietest days (Dec 15 to Jan 6)
| Season | Christmas fell on | Busiest | Quietest |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2019-20 | Wednesday | Fri Dec 20 (2.68 million); Fri Dec 27 (2.65 million) | Wed Dec 25 (2.00 million); Tue Dec 24 (2.04 million) |
| 2022-23 | Sunday | Fri Dec 16 (2.45 million); Wed Dec 21 (2.43 million) | Sun Dec 25 (1.80 million); Sat Dec 24 (1.83 million) |
| 2023-24 | Monday | Fri Dec 22 (2.78 million); Tue Dec 26 (2.67 million) | Sun Dec 24 (1.97 million); Mon Dec 25 (2.03 million) |
| 2024-25 | Wednesday | Fri Dec 27 (2.85 million); Fri Dec 20 (2.85 million) | Wed Dec 25 (2.04 million); Tue Dec 24 (2.07 million) |
| 2025-26 | Thursday | Sun Dec 28 (2.92 million); Tue Dec 30 (2.83 million) | Tue Jan 6 (1.94 million); Tue Dec 16 (2.05 million) |
Source: TSA [1]
The busiest and quietest days to fly, 2026 to 2027
These are the days the pattern above points to. They are expectations from 2019 to 2026, not forecasts, and weather or school calendars can shift them [1].
Expected peaks and lulls for the coming holidays
| Holiday | Expect the busiest day | Quieter days to fly |
|---|---|---|
| Thanksgiving 2026 (Thu Nov 26) | Sun Nov 29; then Mon Nov 30, Wed Nov 25 and Fri Nov 20 | Thu Nov 26; then Wed Dec 2, Fri Nov 27 and Tue Dec 1 |
| Christmas 2026 (Fri Dec 25) | Fri Dec 18, and Sat Dec 26 to Wed Dec 30 | Thu Dec 24 and Fri Dec 25 |
| New Year's 2027 (Fri Jan 1) | Sat Dec 26 to Wed Dec 30 | Thu Dec 31 and Fri Jan 1 |
| MLK Day 2027 (Mon Jan 18) | Fri Jan 15 | Wed Jan 20, Tue Jan 19 and Wed Jan 13 |
| Presidents' Day 2027 (Mon Feb 15) | Fri Feb 12 and Mon Feb 15 | Wed Feb 10 and Sat Feb 13 |
| Spring break 2027 | The week of Mar 15 | Early March and after Easter |
| Easter 2027 (Sun Mar 28) | Thu Mar 25 | Tue Mar 23 and Sat Mar 27 |
| Memorial Day 2027 (Mon May 31) | Fri May 28 and Thu May 27 | Sat May 29, Sun May 30, Tue May 25 |
| July 4, 2027 (Sun) | No single peak: the days around it run within about 5% of each other | Sun Jul 4 |
| Labor Day 2027 (Mon Sep 6) | Fri Sep 3 and Thu Sep 2 | Tue Aug 31 and Wed Sep 8 |
Source: Pattern from TSA 2019, 2022 to 2026 [1]
The quietest days to fly
- Thanksgiving Day: the quietest day of the year in 2019, 2024 and 2025 (1,559,165 screened on Nov 27, 2025) [1].
- Christmas Day and Christmas Eve: among the three quietest days of the holiday season in nearly every year [1].
- Tuesdays and Wednesdays in January and early February: in 2025, 9 of the 10 quietest days of the year were in January or February [1].
- The holiday itself on July 4, and the Tuesday or Wednesday right after a Monday holiday [1].
- Halloween: Oct 31 ran 15% to 22% below the same weekday in nearby weeks in every year checked [1].
Is air travel busier in 2026?
Slightly less. From Jan 1 to Oct 25, 2026, TSA screened 737,504,219 people, 0.8% fewer than on the same dates in 2025 and 6.2% more than in 2019 [1]. 2026 ran ahead of 2025 from January to April and behind it from May on. It set no new single-day record; its busiest day so far was Thursday, Jun 18, 2026, with 2,988,204 screenings, the 16th busiest day on record. 2025 remains the busiest year: 906,735,976 screenings.
Questions travelers ask
What is the busiest travel day of the year?
The Sunday after Thanksgiving. It was the busiest day of the year in 2019, 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025, and on Nov 30, 2025, TSA screened 3,134,613 people, the most on any day in its public count [1].
Is the Wednesday before Thanksgiving the busiest travel day?
No. In 2025 it was the #94 busiest day of the year by TSA screenings; the Sunday after Thanksgiving was #1 [1]. Departures spread over several days before Thanksgiving, while returns pile onto that Sunday.
What is the least busy day to fly?
Thanksgiving Day is usually the quietest day of the year: 1,559,165 people were screened on Nov 27, 2025, about half the record set three days later [1]. On a normal week, Tuesday is the quietest day, about 21% lighter than Sunday in 2025.
Is Sunday a busy day to fly?
Yes. Sunday was the busiest day of the week in 2025, 10.1% above the weekly average, and 14 of the 30 busiest days on record were Sundays [1].
Is Thanksgiving Day a good day to fly?
For crowds, yes: it is the quietest day of its travel period every year, about 36% below the period's average [1]. Flying out on Thanksgiving morning trades the holiday meal timing for short lines.
What is the busiest day to fly around Christmas?
It depends on the weekday Christmas falls on. In recent years the peaks were the Friday before Christmas week and the weekend after Christmas, while Christmas Day was among the three quietest days of the season every year [1].
Is Labor Day a busy travel day?
The Monday holiday is busy (about 15% above the period's average), but the Friday before Labor Day is the peak: the busiest day of the period in 6 of 6 years, about 22% above average [1].
What are the busiest months to fly?
June and July, each about 10% above the average day of the year; January is the quietest month, about 15% below [1].
How this guide was made
Counts are TSA's published checkpoint travel numbers: people screened at U.S. airport security checkpoints each day, Jan 1, 2019 to Oct 25, 2026 (2,855 days, none missing), read on Oct 26, 2026 [1]. A screening is not a unique traveler: a round trip is usually two screenings, and connecting passengers who stay airside are not counted. 2020 and 2021 are pandemic years and are left out of the holiday patterns; 2022 is included but was still recovering. Holiday periods compare each day with the average day of the same period across 2019 and 2022 to 2026; fixed-date holidays (July 4, Christmas) move across weekdays, so their patterns are less regular. The 2026 to 2027 table applies those patterns to the coming calendar; it is not a forecast.
Sources
- TSA checkpoint travel numbers (people screened per day), 2019 to Oct 25 2026, Transportation Security Administration, retrieved October 26, 2026